One of the thing that spoke to me most about Jasper's talk was his style of writing. He said that he doesn't plan what he's writing- instead he sets himself a challenge and writes his way out of it. For instance, one of his early short stories was about someone who turned into a banana (I think I've remembered the correct object- it was just as weird if not). Then, when he's finished writing, he goes through and becomes his own critic. This can result in a large portion of the book being rewritten, up to half of it being thrown out and approximately four times as much material in his home than in the published books (some of these 'outtakes' can be viewed on his website). Only then does he consider the book good enough to be sent for reading prior to publishing.
Right, by now (if you haven't heard of Jasper Fforde) your probably wondering what his books are about. Well, I'm going to take Jasper's advice and simply tell you that you have to read them and then you'll understand why people love them so much.
